baby, i'm yours - ASHTON

[lacey claire o'leary]

Adrenaline was rushing through Lacey's body. Her blood was pumping and her heart was racing. Ashton was coming home. Her husband was finally coming home. No matter how long he was gone for, she still missed him dearly. But absence and distance makes the heart grow fonder. She still felt the familiar butterflies in her stomach that she felt during their first date and even at their wedding. Every time he left for tour, Lacey felt an ache in her chest but she grew used to the prolonged loneliness. She had the adorable puppy Ashton bought her along with her art and work but making herself busy didn't always make the time pass by so quickly.

When the band was in New York, Ashton stopped by for a night and spent it with Lacey which made her the happiest girl alive. He was very romantic and made the night quite memorable. But alas, he had to leave the next day but it made Lacey even more eager for when the tour would finish. Fast forward a few weeks and Lacey noticed she missed her monthly cycle and experienced some morning nausea. Common sense plus a visit to the doctor resulted in her finding out she was pregnant. The doctor warned her not to stress herself too much with work and that the baby would be a healthy one despite her past ailment.

Currently, Lacey was prepping the house for Ashton's arrival. She had a nice dinner cooking in the oven with the dining table set with candles and a glass of wine for Ashton and tea for her. Her art supplies littered the living room which she was quickly trying to move back into her studio. Because she spent many weeks alone in their Victorian home, Lacey utilized as much space as she could. It would be weird to adapt to having another person using up this space but she didn't mind whatsoever.

In Lacey's standards, the house was clean. Everything was where it was supposed to be and nothing was streaked or dusty. Perfect. Lacey set up the chicken and pasta dish on the dining table and quickly rushed into the shower. Since beating breast cancer, her hair was slowly beginning to grow back and to signify the new change and new her, her hair was dyed multiple cool colors such as blue and purple. Her hair was still relatively short, about shoulder-length, so she normally put her hair up in a bun. She was dressed in a colorful floral dress with minimal make-up. Lacey was shaking in her dress. She was so excited to see Ashton and tell him the news.

[ashton leslie o'leary]

Touring was so much fun. The antics, the music, the people, the fans, the alcohol, the parties. It could be a bit overwhelming to those who were new. But to a seasoned veteran like Ashton it was the same old, same old. He mostly drank when he was on tour, and took part in the usual fun, though not as much as Bailey normally did. And unfortunately Bailey was still recovering from his ailment so his position was taken by a fill-in appointed by the label. He wasn't quite as much fun, but he was nice. The tour had been very short compared to his usual ones but that didn't mean that he didn't miss home.

Sitting on a metal folding chair behind a table beside his band mates he couldn't stop thinking about home. Granted he had gotten a chance to stop home, and made it worth while, but it just made him miss it so much more. It was like thinking that a taste would hold him over, but instead it just made him much more eager of when he would get the real thing. Ashton signed CD's, T-shirts and tour posters as people filed down the lines to each band member. Ashton was usually last in line and most of the time was the one fans were most excited to see. Which wasn't exactly fair, his band had many members, and all were wonderfully talented, most more so than him. Though it wasn't out of the ordinary to witness a fan sobbing at the sight of the band, telling them that they saved their life. It was flattering no lie, but how do you follow that up, how do you exceed expectation next time. But it was better to be a life saver, then a life ender. He scrawled his signature on another CD and handed it back with a smile.

Now sitting behind the wheel of his own Mercedes, speeding down the winding roads of New York state Ashton was racing home with such anticipation of his wife. He didn't expect dinner or for her to be dressed up, all he wanted was a hug, and to sit down with her and watch a movie until his eye lids became much too heavy to hold open. And he would pass out with Lacey laying her head on his chest, the perfect ending to coming home.

He pulled into the driveway and parked next to Lacey's car in the musty smelling garage. He grabbed his bag filled with dirty thrice worn laundry which had become sadly fragrant by the end of the tour. He pulled the collar of his shirt up to his nose for a quick test. It didn't exactly smell like flowers but it would be okay for now. He was sure Lacey wouldn't mind. He closed the door and locked the car exiting the wooden structure. Ashton pulled the garage door down behind him, hiding his car from view and strode to the home where his wife and his dog was waiting. He pushed the door open and was hit with the smell of something delicious. He smiled to himself, he really had picked a good one when he married Lacey. Ashton dropped his bag on the floor with a loud dull thud and looked in the direction of the top of the stairs. "Lace?" he called wanted to know where his beloved was hiding herself. When she appeared Ashton smiled and waited for her at the bottom of the stairs. "There you are beautiful."

[lacey claire o'leary]

Image was everything to Lacey. Presentation and placement were crucial in how she did anything. Everything was art to Lacey and everything was an art form. The pasta dish was placed in the center of the table alongside a vase assorted with different colored roses Lacey grew in their garden. Chicken in Italian dressing was placed on new white places at their seats with the silverware placed atop a cream colored napkin stitched with gold edges. Lacey brought out the fancy stuff for their romantic dinner. She really wanted to set the mood that would hopefully engage Ashton for her big announcement. It was a big deal to her and something that would surely solidify their marriage.

Lacey always wanted a child. Spending time alone at home with her husband on tour made her realize how much she actually wanted a child. Granted, she loved her little puppy but she couldn't teach him how to walk or talk or read. To be able to hold a life that you and someone you love made was all she wanted. A family with Ashton was all she desired now. She had her dream career, her dream house, and she was married to the love of her life. Her soulmate. Raising a child was just the next step. A step she was ready to take. A step she was going to take, regardless if she and Ashton were even ready. The truth of the matter was: she was pregnant. She was about 5 weeks pregnant and in her gut, she knew this was the right time. She had beat the worst illness she has ever faced before, her husband was off tour and would be off for a while, she was working again and getting out of her art funk. Everything in her life was stable now and adding a child into the mix would only make her happier.

With the table made and house was clean as she could possibly make it, Lacey was ready for Ashton. She was dressed and prepped and ready to see her husband. Lacey heard an audible thud at the bottom of the stairs along with her nickname. "Ashton?" She gasped. Lacey quickly whipped around and dashed to the stairs, happy tears threatening to escape. She halted to see her husband at the bottom of the stairs and quickly skipped down them. She jumped into his arms and gave him a passionate kiss. "Ashton! I've missed you so much," Lacey cried.

[ashton leslie o'leary]

The sound of the bag hitting the floor must have alerted the family dog that he was home. It barked and skidded around on the hardwood floors. Ash knelt down to pet it when it came crashing into him. He ruffled it's long golden fur, and flopped his ears around. The dog loved him, but had attached himself to Lacey which was understandable seeing as how Ashton was on tour a lot. But when his wife appeared at the top of the stairs Ash grinned from ear to ear. He couldn't explain the feeling in his body if he even tried. It was almost a warm sensation that spread from his core to the tips of his extremities.

Lacey raced down to him and he opened his arms. It was a wonderful feeling to feel like someone was waiting for you, and happy to see you come home. She lept into his arms and he wrapped one in the small of her back, while the other under her bottom to hold her high in the air against him. Ashton pressed his lips into hers for a few seconds before he gently placed her back on the ground and tucked some hair behind her ear. "Missed me didn't ya?" he smiled brightly. Ashton walked away from her, glancing over his shoulder to signal to her to follow, he entered the dining room where his nose had lead him. "Dinner?" he paused and pointed gently at the table, "and wine?" Ashton turned his body towards her, "Are you divorcing me?" he raised an eyebrow, why would she miss him so much? Was she having an affair? Or maybe he had done something wrong. Ashton raised his hand to his chin and ran down a list of anything that could be misconstrued as something he would have done wrong to make Lacey mad.

[lacey claire o'leary]

The pup Lacey and Ashton shared was alerted by the thud of Ashton's belongings and immediately chased after the sound before Lacey would even collect who it could even be. But alas, she followed the puppy into the arms of her husband. The man she loved and missed so dearly. Ashton wrapped his arms around her to lift her into the air in a loving hug. He pressed their lips together before gently placing her back on the ground. She missed feeling those lips upon hers. Ashton tucked her hair behind her ears which caused Lacey to blush and tilt her head coyly. His touch sent jolts of energy through her. She wanted to melt at his touch and embrace him with love. "Of course, I missed you," Lacey smiled. She missed his playful demeanor and jokes and kisses and hugs and she just missed him, god dammit. Lacey quickly followed after Ashton over to the dining room where she prepared their extravagant dinner.

She stopped in her tracks behind him when she heard the word "divorce" escape his lips. "What? Divorce? God, no. Ashton, no. I- I actually have an announcement for you." Lacey walked over to Ashton and grabbed his hand. She led him to his seat at the dinner table and poured his drink. While serving Ashton his wine and dinner, Lacey began to tell her announcement: "Well, after you visited during that day off a while back, I, um, began to feel these odd symptoms." Lacey turned to Ashton to see if he would react. She knew he was very concerned over her health but she wanted to assure him it was nothing major. "It was nothing extreme. Just some nausea and dizziness, nothing serious. And it was during the mornings that I was feeling all of this so," Lacey could feel her ears heat up as she rambled with the story. "I went to the doctor's to see if it was the flu or something and he did some tests and asked when I had my last cycle and I couldn't remember when it was and so, long story short: Ashton, I'm pregnant."

[ashton leslie o'leary]

She disputed divorce, so at least they were getting somewhere. But if it wasn't divorce it couldn't really be that bad, so he let his guard down and relaxed a bit. Lacey took his hand and led to to his seat, maybe she had gotten a gallery show or something along those lines. Which was great, and meant that Ashton was off the hook. He watched her pour wine in a glass, Ash muttering a thanks under his breath a bit more interested in what it was that she had to say to him. She seemed to be stalling enough but he wouldn't rush her. She said she was feeling odd symptoms and Ashton looked up at her concerned. Had the cancer come back? He couldn't pull the cancer from his mind even when she tried to reassure him. He just knew it must be back, suddenly he didn't feel hungry. She started again and Ashton raised the glass to his lips. He was going to need a lot more wine to make it through this evening if she was sick again. It was too much to hit him with this when he had just come home from tour.

What she said next caused Ashton to choke. The wine tasted sour as it pooled in the back of his throat. He managed to place the glass down without spilling but formed two fists and slammed them on the table as he made unhuman sounds from his end of the table. He most certainly was unprepared for that. He coughed a few times, cleared his throat twice, and looked up at her slightly breathing heavily. It was still processing, it wasn't that he didn't want it, it was more so that he had been so blind sided. He got up calmly, pushing his chair back in and walked toward her in almost a curious way. When Ashton reached her he wrapped his arms around her shoulders and placed his head on her shoulder, a smile growing. He wasn't sure if he was ready to be a dad but at this moment when the actual commitment had not set in he was excited. His arms tightened around her, pulling her in close and kissing her head. "I'm going to be a father?" he asked pulling back from her and looking in her eyes with the expression of a child asking for a piece of candy. It seemed so surreal but he was happy. He was going to have a little girl or boy with his wife. And hopefully he would have more time off with the band to be there for his child, and his wife.

[lacey claire o'leary]

So far, everything was acting out well. The dinner was wonderfully prepared and the food smelled and looked great. The wine was a nice and deep red with a glorious and fine smell to it. Everything looked and felt classy. In Lacey's mind, it would help ease the burden Ashton would feel once she broke the news. She knew he felt some guilt for being away on tour while she battled, and beat, cancer and even in general, leaving her alone. But now, with a baby on the way, they would be able to spend more time together and grow even closer. Lacey couldn't wait for the baby shopping they'd do and preparing the nursery together. She'd paint the walls and maybe paint a mural while Ashton assembled the furniture until he realized making stuff wasn't exactly his thing and he'd leave Lacey to do it and he'd just stand there and look cute while trying to help. Their perfect little family was soon on its way and Lacey was so ecstatic for it. She was feeling those familiar butterflies she always did whenever she was excited.

All of a sudden, Ashton was racked with coughs as he tried to catch his breath. He was choking on the wine Lacey gave him as he took in the news. "Ashton! Are you okay?" Lacey jumped up from her seat. He put the glass down and hit the table while trying to breathe. She didn't exactly know what to do if someone was choking. Should she give him water or smack his back? Or just let him cough it out until he could breathe again? He coughed a bit before clearing his throat and looking at her. Lacey raised an eyebrow in concern. Ashton strutted over to her and gave her a side-hug. She gently placed her hand on his cheek when he rested his head on her shoulder. Lacey shut her eyes when he kissed her head and took in the moment of serenity. "Yes, you're going to be a father." A grin spread from cheek-to-cheek as happy tears escaped. "We're going to be parents."